Two Key Elements of Meaningful Experiences

Every month we look at the elements of meaningful experiences as we study how companies can create experiences that strengthen people and the areas of their life as they reflect on them over time. For companies, meaningful experiences give them permission to be connected with their customers at a deeper level, know more about them, and get their jobs done in a differentiated way that creates advocates. Positivity in experiences most often comes from empowered employees and is a refection of company culture.

 As we learned in the Meaningful Experiences Collaborative, two key elements of meaningful experiences are little things and positivity. Positivity is about encouraging optimism and gratitude. It is about how we engage with each other and a mindset that impacts the vibe of an experience and creates a sense of connection. The world needs positivity more now than ever as people continue to rate their emotional health down from March. There are a lot of examples of positivity that can be found and they are often simple: a smile, listening, eye contact, recognizing or showing a customer that you know them, their goals and what they care about. Humor and thankfulness are other ways of showing positivity in experiences; often we are far too earnest in experience design. You can read more about “little things” in this post 7 Minutes to Transform a Humdrum Customer Experience into a Meaningful One from my colleague Bryan Searing.

That brings me to the phenomenon of painted rocks. Have you found one yet? Do you remember your sense of joy when you found it? The sense of connection you had with the person who created it for someone to find. Painted rocks are fun for the person painting it, the person hiding it, and the person finding it.  It is a great way to feel connected even though it is rare for the creator and recipient of the rock to ever meet.  The time spent painting a rock is joyful because you are not just expressing your creativity (yes we are all creative even if, like me, stick figures are your forte) , but also investing time to bring joy to someone else’s day. Time that gives you the “do good” feeling. We saw in the Stone Mantel September Meaningful Experiences Monitor a jump in the number of people who want experiences that give that “do good” feeling. Look for simple ways to build positivity into your experiences. And for you personally, whether you choose to paint a rock or spread positivity in other ways, I hope you make a difference in someone's life this week, no matter how small!